Volvo to export ‘Made-in-India’ buses to Europe, source key components from Pithampur powertrain plant

Volvo Buses is to start exporting its Made-in-India buses to Europe to tap opportunities in intercity commuter segment in European countries. Volvo will be the first premium bus manufacturer to export buses from India to Europe. The export-quality buses will be manufactured at its Indian manufacturing plant in Hoskote near Bangalore.

Addressing a media conference today in Bangalore, Håkan Agnevall, president, Volvo Buses, said, “Under the Asia Leverage programme, we are looking to utilise the efficient engineering and manufacturing expertise in India to meet the demands of other global markets. The commencement of exports to Europe from India is a proof point of these capabilities. We are confident that going forward we will leverage the skills and strengths in India to meet the European market requirements.”

The size of intercity commuter segment in Europe is around 5,000 buses per annum. The India-made buses will be manufactured to Euro 4 norm specifications with an imported driveline. However, the bus body and the majority of compartments will have local content.

The Asia Leverage programme will also ensure that by catering to exports, the Indian facility will be able to face the cyclical domestic market demands. The company will gradually scale up exports from India to cater to other markets in the future, Agnevall added.

Akash Passey, senior vice-president – Business Region International, Volvo Buses, said, “Over the years, we have built, nurtured and advanced local competence in critical areas such as product development, manufacturing techniques and engineering skills with the view to address demands of export markets. Export to Europe confirms the expertise we have developed in our Indian facility. We are actively exploring opportunities to supply to new markets and in the long term we aim to enhance the role of India in our export plans.”

Volvo Buses has been exporting a small number of buses to neighbouring countries like Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in addition to South Africa. Now, with bus exports to Europe, it is likely that India will gain new status as a major exporting hub for Volvo.

Agnevall said that the made-in-India bus will be sold as a Completely Built Units (CBU) in Europe. The company’s Asia Leverage strategy aims to utilise its manufacturing presence in India and China to cater to demands from other global markets.

According to top officials from Volvo Buses who spoke to Autocar Professional, the buses will have a good proportion of local content. Although the driveline is imported to match Euro 6 norms, the key components will be sourced from the Volvo Eicher Commercial Vehicle (VECV) powertrain plant in Pithampur, Madhya Pradesh, to use the engine fitted in export buses made at the Hoskote plant. It may be noted that the Pithampur plant has already been exporting powertrains to Volvo’s global facilities.

Meanwhile, company officials also revealed that Volvo Buses India will soon implement a pilot programme in India to run hybrid buses as part of its eco-friendly vehicle promoting programme and in line with the Indian government’s Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME) scheme.